One interesting American thing (a technical term, meaning a moment or event, a text, a controversy, an idea, a figure, or whatevertheheckelse I think of) per day, from Ben Railton, a professor of American literature, culture, history, and, natch, Studies.

MyAmericanFuture

MyAmericanFuture

Friday, November 7, 2014

November 7, 2014: Exemplary Elections: 1994

[I don’t have
high hopes for Tuesday’s elections, but I also know they’ll be far from the
most complex or significant ones in American history in any case. So this week
I’ll AmericanStudy five such exemplary elections and election years. I vote
that you add your thoughts, on this year’s elections or any others!]

1)Oliver
North: True, former Reagan aide and Iran Contra figure North lost
his Virginia Senate bid (to incumbent Charles Robb). But it’s far from a
coincidence that North has gone on to become a Fox News star—every aspect
of his campaign, from his emphasis on his born-again Christianity to his
unrelenting attack ads on Robb, has become integral to the 21st
century right-wing media world of which he’s now a part.

2)Bill
Frist: One of the most surprising 1994 victors was Frist, a heart surgeon
with no prior political experience who defeated three-term incumbent Tennessee Senator
Jim Sasser. One of 1994’s most lasting influences has been the value placed on “outsiders,”
not just to Washington but to the political realm itself; and no candidate fit
that mold better than Frist, who would go on to become the ultimate insider
as Senate Majority Leader.

3)Rick
Santorum: Among the many GOP triumphs in 1994, relatively little attention
was paid to Pennsylvania Congressman Rick Santorum’s victory over incumbent
Senator Harris Wofford (in part because Wofford had been appointed after John
Heinz’s tragic 1991 death, so was far from an established incumbent). Yet
Santorum’s victory was hugely significant, and not only because he has gone on
to be a perennial
presidential candidate. It marked the growing presence and power of
Christian Conservatives, a trend that would culminate in the election and
presidency of George W. Bush six years later.

#NoConfederateSyllabus

In response to the controversy over HBO's proposed show Confederate, Matthew Teutsch and I have collaborated on #NoConfederateSyllabus, a Google Doc that you all can contribute to as well. Check out an intro here: